Two-compartment container

ABSTRACT

A two-compartment container for separate storage of two ingredients of a product for eventual mixing comprises a bottle and a stopper and capsule assembly mounted on the bottle. A tubular capsule is slidably mounted in a tubular sleeve of the stopper to move between upper and lower terminal positions. In the lower terminal position the capsule is sealed, but when the capsule is moved to its upper terminal position, apertures in the sleeve are opened which permit the contents of the capsule to drop into the bottle. The upper end of the capsule is closed by a cap which is provided with a frangible portion which may be broken to provide an aperture through which the contents of the container may be discharged.

12/1974 Maekawa et 222/1425 ABSTRACT Primary Examiner-William PriceAssistant ExaminerD0uglas B. Farrow Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Nichol M.Sandoe A two-compartment container for separate storage of twoingredients of a product for eventual mixing comprises a bottle and astopper and capsule assembly mounted on the bottle. A tubular capsule isslidably mounted in a tubular sleeve of the stopper to move betweenupper and lower terminal positions. In the lower terminal position thecapsule is sealed, but when the capsule is moved to its upper terminalposition, apertures in the sleeve are opened which permit the contentsof the capsule to drop into the bottle. The upper end of the capsule isclosed by a cap which is provided with a frangible portion which may bebro- United States Patent [191 Kachur et al.

[ TWO-COMPARTMENT CONTAINER Inventors: Nicholas W. Kachur, Clark;

Anthony F. Tomburo, Cranford, both of NJ.

Assignee: Gibson Associates Incorporated,

Cranford, NJ.

[22] Filed: Mar. 4, 1975 [21] Appl. No.: 555,138

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Wetherell, Jr.

m tk k mun m b r 80 SK 524 4667 9999 1111 ///l 8260 1 1 8405 7985 ,J2093 0073 2333 m n w n O c e h t S m m w w, h& E co g Ur. 0a h &0 a Md 65 m M a i m b m1 7 vm Z mm 0 i 1 1,: O t mm k0 4. 20 Q72G ,OZWI NWZDElI/lA/lI/lll/fl/l/l/lI/a US. Patent Dec. 9, 1975 nu--g lI/Il/I/IIIII I7 /////////////////l//////////////////// fllv TWO-COMPARTMENT CONTAINERThis invention relates to containers and pertains more particularly tocontainers having two compartments in which two ingredients of a productmay be stored separately until it is desired to mix them, at which timeit is possible to establish communication between the compartments sothat the separated ingredients may move from one compartment to theother.

Such containers are useful for a variety of products, and moreparticularly for products in the fields of pharmaceuticals andcosmetics, for example, which comprise two ingredients which may bestored separately for reasonably long periods of time, but which, aftermixing, result in a product which may deteriorate rather rapidly. Suchproducts usually comprise at least one liquid ingredient and one otheringredient which may be either a liquid ingredient or a dry ingredientin the form of granules or powder.

It is an object of the present invention to provide such a containerwhich is simple to construct, easy to operate both as to filling withthe separated ingredients and as to discharge of the mixed product, andwhich embodies certain safety features which protect against accidental,premature mixing of the separated ingredients, and against accidentaldischarge of the mixed product.

According to the present invention, the container comprises a bottlehaving a cylindrical neck on which a stopper and capsule assembly ismounted and is secured thereto by conventional means such as screwthreads, or a bayonet joint, or by a snap-on interference fit. The saidstopper comprises a tubular sleeve which extends downwardly through thebottle neck and terminates in a transverse wall which closes the lowerend of the sleeve. The tubular wall of the lower portion of the sleeveadjacent said transverse wall has a plurality of apertures extendingtherethrough.

A tubular capsule is slidably mounted within said tubular sleeve to movebetween upper and lower terminal positions. In the lower terminalposition of said capsule, the lower portion of the tubular wall of thecapsule closes and seals said apertues. Also, the tubular wallterminates in a circular rim which seats against the transverse wall ofthe sleeve to seal the lower end of the capsule. Thus, in the lowerterminal position of the capsule, the contents of the capsule areeffectively separated from the contents of the bottle. When the capsuleis moved to its upper terminal position, however, the apertures in thesleeve are opened and the contents of the capsules are permitted to fallinto the bottle. A closure cap is mounted on the upper end of thecapsule and may be secured thereto in any suitable manner.

It is to be noted that even after the capsule has been moved to itsupper terminal position, the container remains sealed. Therefore, it ispossible to shake the container to insure thorough mixing of theingredients without fear of accidental discharge of the mixed product.

In order to permit discharge of the contents when desired, the closurecap is provided with a frangible portion which may be broken to providea discharge aperture in the cap. In the preferred embodiment, the capcomprises a disk having a rim which is secured to the upper end of thecapsule, and the disk is provided with a centrally located dome whichextends upwardly from said disk and is integrally connected thereto by athin 2 circular frangible ring. When it is desired to discharge thecontents, the ring may be broken either by twisting the dome or applyinglateral pressure thereto, leaving a central aperture through which thecontents of the container may be poured.

A preferred embodiment of the invention selected for purposes ofillustration is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which,

FIG. 1 is an elevation of the stopper body of the container.

FIG. 2 is a vertical section through the container showing the capsulein its lower terminal position with the contents of the capsuleseparated from the contents of the bottle.

FIG. 3 is a similar view showing the capusle in its upper terminalposition to allow the contents of the capsule to flow into and mix withthe contents of the bottle.

FIG. 4 is a similar view showing the dome of the closure disk brokenaway from the disk to form an aperture through which the contents of thecontainer may be poured.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view showing the frangible integralconnection between the disk and the dome.

Referring to the drawings, the container comprises a bottle 1 and astopper and capsule assembly designated generally by 2. The bottle has atubular neck 3 and the assembly may be secured to the neck in anysuitable manner as by interengaging screw threads 4 and 5 on the bottleand on the depending skirt 6 of the stopper, respectively.

The stopper comprises a tubular sleeve 7 which extends downwardlythrough said neck and terminates in a transverse wall 8 which closes thelower end of the sleeve. The lower portion of the sleeve adjacent saidtransverse wall is provided with a plurality of apertures 9.

The capsule comprises a tubular wall 11 which is slidably mounted withinsaid sleeve to move between the lower and upper terminal positions asillustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, respectively. In the lower terminalposition of the capsule the lower portion 12 of the wall 11 closes andseals the apertures 9. The lower portion 12 terminates in a rim 13 whichseats against the transverse wall 8 of the sleeve and seals the lowerend of the capsule.

The movement of the capsule to its lower terminal position is limited bythe seating of the rim 13 against the wall. The movement of the capsuleto its upper terminal position is limited by engagement of the shoulder14 of an enlarged portion 15 of the wall 11 with an opposed shoulder 16of the stopper. The engagement of said shoulders to establish an upperterminal position of the capsule is important to prevent accidental orpremature withdrawal of the capsule from the stopper.

The upper end of the capsule is closed and sealed by a closure cap 21which may be mounted on and secured thereto in any suitable manner. Inthe embodiment illustrated, the upper end of the capsule wall 11terminates in a flange 17 which projects outwardly from the wall. Thecap 21 comprises a disk 22 having a depending flange 23 which terminatesin a bead 24 which engages the under side of the flange 17 to provide asnap-on interference fit.

It is possible to simply remove the closure cap from the capsule when itis desired to discharge the contents of the container. It is preferable,however, to provide a smaller aperture in order that the discharge ofthe contents may be better controlled. For this purpose, the disk 22 isprovided with a frangible portion which when broken provides a dischargeaperture of limited size. In the embodiment illustrated, the cap isprovided with a dome 25 projecting upwardly therefrom which isintegrally connected to the disk 22 by a thin circular frangible ring 26which may be broken either by twisting the dome or by applying lateralpressure thereto.

The thickness of the frangible ring 26 may be designed to provide thedesired degree of resistance to breaking. Preferably, it is so designedas to be broken relatively easily by an adult, but to resist breaking bysmall children.

The bottle 1 and the stopper and capsule assembly 2, including theclosure cap 21 may be made of any suitable materials, but preferably ofplastics such as polyethylene or polypropylene, for example,

In assembling the container for use, a measured quantity of oneingredient 27, here assumed to be a liquid, is placed in the bottle 1.Then, with the capsule in its lower terminal position within the sleeve,a measured quantity of a second ingredient 28, here assumed to begranular, is placed in the capsule. The closure cap 21 is then snappedonto the flange 17 to seal the capsule, after which the stopper andcapsule assembly may be screwed down onto the neck of the bottle.

In using the container, the capsule is pulled upwardly from the positionof FIG. 2 to the position of FIG. 3, thus opening the apertures 9 toallow the contents of the capsule to drop into the bottle. The containermay then be shaken to mix the two ingredients thoroughly. Then thefrangible portion of the cap is broken by manipulation of the dome toprovide an aperture 29 through which the contents may be discharged.

What is claimed is:

1. A two-compartment container comprising a bottle having a cylindricalneck, a stopper and capsule assembly mounted on said neck, said stopperand neck having interengaging means to secure said stopper to said neck,said stopper having a tubular sleeve extending downwardly through saidneck and terminating in a transverse wall which closes the lower end ofsaid sleeve, the lower portion of said sleeve adjacent said transversewall having a plurality of apertures extending therethrough, saidcapsule comprising a tubular wall slidably mounted within said sleeve tomove between upper and lower terminal positions, the lower portion ofsaid tubular wall being adapted to close and seal apertures in the lowerterminal position of said capsule and to open said apertures in theupper terminal position of said capsule, said tubular wall terminatingin a rim which, in the lower terminal position of said capsule, seatsagainst the transverse wall of said sleeve to seal the lower end of saidcapsule.

2. A two-compartment container as claimed in claim 1, including aclosure cap mounted on the upper end of said capsule.

3. A two-compartment container as claimed in claim 2 in which saidclosure cap is provided with a frangible portion which when brokenprovides an aperture in said cap through which the contents of thecontainer may be discharged.

4. A two-compartment container as claimed in claim 2 in which saidclosure cap comprises a disk having a rim which engages the upper end ofsaid capsule, said disk having a dome extending upwardly therefrom whichis integrally connected to said disk by a thin, cir cular frangiblering.

5. A stopper and capsule assembly adapted to be mounted on the neck of abottle, said stopper comprising a tubular sleeve terminating in atransverse wall which closes the lower end of said sleeve, the lowerportion of said sleeve adjacent said transverse wall having a pluralityof apertures extending therethrough, said capsule comprising a tubularwall slidably mounted within said sleeve to move between upper and lowerterminal positions, the lower portion of said tubular wall being adaptedto close and seal said apertures in the lower terminal position of saidcapsule and to open said apertures in the upper terminal position ofsaid capsule, said tubular wall terminating in a rim which, in the lowerterminal position of said capsule, seats against the transverse wall ofsaid sleeve to seal the lower end of said capsule.

1. A two-compartment container comprising a bottle having a cylindricalneck, a stopper and capsule assembly mounted on said neck, said stopperand neck having interengaging means to secure said stopper to said neck,said stopper having a tubular sleeve extending downwardly through saidneck and terminating in a transverse wall which closes the lower end ofsaid sleeve, the lower portion of said sleeve adjacent said transversewall having a plurality of apertures extending therethrough, saidcapsule comprising a tubular wall slidably mounted within said sleeve tomove between upper and lower terminal positions, the lower portion ofsaid tubular wall being adapted to close and seal apertures in the lowerterminal position of said capsule and to open said apertures in theupper terminal position of said capsule, said tubular wall terminatingin a rim which, in the lower terminal position of said capsule, seatsagainst the transverse wall of said sleeve to seal the lower end of saidcapsule.
 2. A two-compartment container as claimed in claim 1, includinga closure cap mounted on the upper end of said capsule.
 3. Atwo-compartment container as claimed in claim 2 in which said closurecap is provided with a frangible portion which when broken provides anaperture in said cap through which the contents of the container may bedischarged.
 4. A two-compartment container as claimed in claim 2 inwhich said closure cap comprises a disk having a rim which engages theupper end of said capsule, said disk having a dome extending upwardlytherefrom which is integrally connected to said disk by a thin, circularfrangible ring.
 5. A stopper and capsule assembly adapted to be mountedon the neck of a bottle, said stopper comprising a tubular sleeveterminating in a transverse wall which closes the lower end of saidsleeve, the lower portion of said sleeve adjacent said transverse wallhaving a plurality of apertures extending therethrough, said capsulecomprising a tubular wall slidably mounted within said sleeve to movebetween upper and lower Terminal positions, the lower portion of saidtubular wall being adapted to close and seal said apertures in the lowerterminal position of said capsule and to open said apertures in theupper terminal position of said capsule, said tubular wall terminatingin a rim which, in the lower terminal position of said capsule, seatsagainst the transverse wall of said sleeve to seal the lower end of saidcapsule.